Warning: Spoilers for Fallout season 1
Summary
- The Ghoul’s “golden rule” perfectly encapsulates the player experience in a Fallout game.
- Fallout TV show embraces game lore, Easter eggs, and the formula of getting sidetracked in the Wasteland.
- Series mirrors game’s approach to storytelling, focusing on diversions and challenges that shape the protagonist’s journey.
A single line from The Ghoul perfectly summed up what it feels like to play a Fallout game. In addition to the new chapter it brings to the franchise, Prime Video’s show has already developed a reputation for its litany of Fallout Easter eggs. The series has made its approach to the lore surrounding Fallout’s world one of its biggest appeals.
Each episode of Fallout is chock-full of references to the games. It pays tribute to a long list of characters, concepts, and weapons associated with the source material. These small details, such as the Grognak TV show at the birthday party and the surprise reveal of Codsworth’s Fallout origin story, say a lot about how much the show has embraced the games. Interestingly, though, the show does more than just borrow from Fallout’s universe; it also tries to emulate the player experience in its own way.
The Ghoul’s Golden Rule Is A Nod To Every Fallout Video Game
The Ghoul basically just said what every player already knows about Fallout
Image via Prime Video
In Fallout episode 3, Walton Goggins’ The Ghoul dismisses Lucy’s idea of what “the golden rule” is, instead claiming that Fallout’s apocalypse has its own “golden rule“: “Thou shalt get sidetracked by bull**** every god****** time.” In one sentence, the Ghoul illustrates exactly what the player experience in a Fallout game is really like. Similar to the TV series itself, the Fallout games rely on an overarching narrative that sees the protagonist work toward a specific goal, but usually, most of the player’s time doesn’t go to the main questline. Instead, much of the player’s time winds up being spent on various distractions that occur along the way.
The Fallout games are built on their ability to “sidetrack” the player. While the player leaves the Vault with a specific goal in mind, it doesn’t take long for their travels in the Wasteland to steer their attention toward other things. Sometimes, this happens when an unexpected encounter with another survivor prompts a new quest. Or, a discovery of a building brings about a long expedition in search of new loot. Over the course of the game, these diversions pile up, and wind up accounting for the vast majority of the hours that a player typically puts into a Fallout game.
The Fallout TV Show’s Story Mirrors The Formula Of The Video Games
The story follows a similar formula, despite being in the format of a TV show
The Ghoul’s “golden rule” demonstrates how Prime Video’s series is employing both the lore and the very formula behind the games to drive its story. After all, the incident with the gulper is just one of the ways that the show uses to “sidetrack” Fallout’s main characters, with the Vault 4 arc, and the fight at the Super Duper Mart, also serving as examples. In the spirit of the games that made the show possible in the first place, Fallout used the size and scope of its universe to throw all sorts of challenges at its Vault Dweller to shape their experience in the series.